Lucid
by Freya Ishtar
Summary: After an unusually close encounter, Chase develops what he believes to be the perfect plan to conquer the Xiaolin Dragons and bring them to the Heylin side, once and for all. The key, of course, is right under their noses. Chamiko/ some RaiKim CONTENT WARNING: MATURE THEMES.
1. That Look

*** I or****iginally posted this to ff. net on 02/15/07-08/20/09 & subsequently deleted it 01/13/11. Every several months, or so, interest in this couple kicks into gear, and I get readers asking me what happened to this fic. I had taken it down due to hitting a proverbial wall with the plot. However, I do wish to get back into it, and that is something I cannot do without freshening up the existing content (if anyone wishes to check for reference, the original version of this can still be found on my deviantARt page, under Freya-Ishtar).**

** So, here, I present the re-vamped _Lucid-_its wording and editing has been touched up, so those that read the original posting and are reading it, again, may or may not notice the difference. For those new to this story, welcome, I hope you enjoy reading my work :). I am fixing the content in each chapter as I go, so am not able to post all of the current chapters at once.  
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**NO FLAMES- If you are not a Chamiko fan, then simply do not read this. Pointlessly mean or cruel reviews will be reported immediately.**

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**Disclaimer:** Xiaolin Showdown and all associated characters & themes are the creation of Christy Hui.

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Chapter One

That Look

She shouldn't have looked at him like that.

Back inside the walls of the Xiaolin temple, Kimiko silently berated herself for not being able to keep her eyes from wandering. Pacing back and forth in her spartan quarters—she'd had to beg Master Fung to allow her a room separate from the boys some time last year due to, as she delicately put it, her unique _feminine_ problems—her small fists clenched and unclenched as she turned the moment over in her mind.

_A Xiaolin Showdown, or at least the ass-end of one . . . Rai versus Chase Young._

She forced herself to stop pacing for a moment and calm her breathing. The way it quickened now when she thought his name was an entirely new addition. _I _know _he noticed it__.__ I only hope noone else did._ They hadn't faced the Heylin in over half a year.

_This is all 'cause of that stupid Dragon._

In the belly of a sleeping Great Dragon—at least two to three times the size of Dojo's enlarged form—lay the Shen Gong Wu they were after. She hadn't been especially happy about being stuck watching Rai's back, not that she'd ever minded watching his back, or any other part of the boy, but entering the dragon's body through a cavernous nostril to search around its innards for a Wu that she wasn't particularly fond of didn't exactly scream _fun night out for Kim_.

Clay and Omi had dashed off into the depths of the chamber to keep an unseen, but _clearly_ heard Wuya and Jack Spicer busy.

The Amatera Lance; a weapon made of an unknown, marble-like ore that could pierce _anything._ It hardly seemed worth it; she often wondered why some of these Wu were even created. A number of them were redundant to ones already discovered, and another handful more seemed utterly useless on their own.

Rai won, but rather than just popping out of sight—as was typical of their nemesis—Chase muttered something about the Dragon's aura dampening his powers and _that fool, Spicer_ being in possession of the Serpent's Tail. Turning to them for a clean way out, Kimiko could only hang her head miserably as she grumbled that she left the Golden Tiger Claws outside with Omi.

In an agreement so unanimous it didn't really need to be spoken, they decided against using the Lance to poke a hole through the Dragon's belly. They didn't imagine that awakening to such a thing would find the massive creature in a good mood.

Feeling defeated despite her comrade's victory, she turned and began leading them back the way they entered. She slipped on dragon mucus several times along the way. Each time, a pair of male hands scooped her up and set her on her feet before she could connect with the slimy ground-that-wasn't-_actually_-ground.

She didn't think much of it. Rai always watched out for her like that, but she was far too distracted with attempting to carefully pick her way through the various collections of goop and dragon-yuck to even glance behind her.

When they finally reached the great beast's snout, it happened again. Mere seconds after she was set on her feet for the last time, she heard a grunt of pain strangely close behind her. Turning toward the sound, she was surprised to see Rai drawing the tip of the Lance's blade from Chase's side.

She didn't understand what just happened. They already won the Showdown and—evil though he might be—Chase had always proven to have a warrior's sense of honor.

What on earth did Rai think he was doing picking a fight with Chase Young of _all_ people?

Clutching lightly at the tear in his armor as a thin ribbon of crimson trickled out, Chase's eyes turned venomous as they locked on Rai, a cold smirk curving his lips. "Do you wish to provoke me into killing you?"

"Don't play dumb, I see what you're up to."

He raised the Lance for another strike, but Kimiko was the one who reacted. The girl instantly jumped out in front of the blade with her arms spread, shielding Chase. Rai lowered the weapon, eyes wide. A split-second later and he'd have pierced a hole clean through the girl's throat.

"Kim, what the hell are you—"

"Leave him alone, Rai. He didn't do anything to you."

"Why are you protecting him?"

Kimiko shook her head. _W__hy are boys so stupid__? _She glanced quickly over her shoulder at Chase—she could tell somehow that _he_ understood what her true motivation was. "I'm not protecting _him_. I'm stopping you from making a big mistake. You won and he's not tried to steal the Wu like some of the other Heylin would."

"But Kim—"

"No. He's honored your victory, attacking him unprovoked makes you lower then the Heylin." Remembering suddenly who stood behind her, she added over her shoulder, "Uh . . . no offense."

"Eh," Chase replied with a shrug, an _it comes with the territory_ look on his face.

A rumbled coursed through the dragon's snout suddenly, causing Kimiko to slip again. The hands that assisted her all this time were yanked away as the slumbering beast let out sneeze, hurling Chase and Rai out of the enormous passage. The strong, disgustingly damp wind sent her skidding across the uneven _floor__. _She slammed into wall of the creature's nasal cavity.

"_Eeewwww__,__"_ was all she could say as she struggled to her feet.

_Let's not go through _that_ again!_

She scrambled as quickly as she could up to the nostril, but before she was able to climb through, another horrid sneeze sent her flying out. She threw her arms up, eyes squeezing shut as she braced for impact against the chamber wall. Instead, she connected with something softer—softer, but still solid—a person, no doubt.

Whoever it was took the brunt of the damage. Catching Kimiko around the waist, her rescuer fell hard against the wall behind him, saving them both from crashing to the ground.

Pressing her palms against the armored chest, she began to push away, but froze instantly. _A__rmored . . . ? Oh, my . . ._ .

Looking up, she found the darkly golden, slit-pupil eyes of Chase Young staring back at her. He began to lower her small feet to the floor when the great beast sneezed for the third time, throwing them into the wall once more. Despite the impact, Chase was able to keep his footing. Rai, next to him, fell to the ground with a bone-jarring thud.

The dragon shook its head and every motion halted as they waited to see what the creature would do next. During the long, nerve-wracking moment, Chase's gaze studied the great beast over the top of Kimiko's head while hers took in his face.

Every time they met that he was handsome was a fact that registered on her, but she'd never realized how handsome. She had never seen him _this _close. It was nearly enough to make a girl's heart stop.

_I like being held this way_. Abashed, she lowered her gaze. Of course it didn't mean anything, she knew that. She'd stopped Rai from skewering him, and now Chase was merely returning the favor by not allowing the monstrous wind to smash her into the wall. At least the view was nice.

Finally the dragon settled down again, drifting back into its deep slumber. She remembered rather suddenly what was happening, unable to stop her eyes from lifting automatically to his. She tried to look away—before he could catch her, before he could see her looking at him—but only the barest moment passed before his gaze returned to hers and she became trapped.

Kimiko could feel her cheeks warming, and hoped that the blush wasn't deep enough for him to notice. Much to her surprise, she noticed the usually bored look in his eyes turn into what she thought might be a glimmer of curiosity as they heard Rai getting to his feet beside them.

"You can put her _down_ now."

Her friend's voice brought her back to her senses, and her gaze fell immediately away from Chase's. He set her down at last. Was it her imagination, or did he move slowly to release her? Before she could step away from him, the rest of their motley group came rushing in.

"What in tarnation was all that ruckus just now?" Clay bellowed in a drawl that came very close to not being slow.

Wuya looked pointedly at Chase and Kimiko, before opening her mouth, her finger pointing from him to the girl, and back again. "What is—"

"And _what_ are you guys covered in?" Jack squealed looking equally curious and disgusted as he ducked behind the sorceress.

All three looked down at themselves as though they'd forgotten the past few, very long seeming, minutes. Chase frowned, Rai made a weak attempt to shake the gunk off, and Kimiko could only shudder as she tried not to think of what they must smell like right now.

"Oh, _eewww!"_

"The damned thing sneezed," Chase explained in a low tone.

Dojo finally chimed in. "I thought that earthquake sounded familiar. Wait, that means you guys are all covered in-"

"_Dragon snot,"_ Jack shouted, giving into ripples of high-pitched, hysterical laughter.

Three faces immediately scowled, but Kimiko quickly changed her expression to one of sadness as she approached him. "Jack, you're so _cruel_."

"Jack Spicer, you have made a girl cry," Omi admonished sullenly. "You should be next to yourself with shame!"

"I think ya mean beside yerself, Omi."

The maniacal giggling stopped and Jack came out of hiding, looking at her as though he'd never seen her before. "Kimiko, you've _changed_ . . . ."

"Yeah, I've also learned how to deal with my temper. Here, let me show you." Before Jack could move, Kimiko threw her arms around him, squeezing him tightly.

His already white face blanched. "Oh, _God!_ I never thought I'd complain at a moment like this, but—_somebody get Kimiko _off _me!"_

After a long moment filled with nothing but the Xiaolin dragons laughing, and Jack's pleading whines, she released him. Though she couldn't say _why_, she walked back to the spot where she'd been originally—between Chase and Rai.

_I'm __simply __reacting to having touched Jack Spicer, that's _all. _Can _I _help it if__—__even covered in slime__—__Chase and Rai are the best looking things in here?_

"Hmph," Chase said as he shrugged out of his armor. "You're lucky she doesn't set you on fire. Tell me Dojo, is this _muck_ flammable?"

Before the currently tiny dragon could respond, Jack bolted out of sight down into the recesses of the chamber.

"Well, I guess now we'll never know."

"Are we through here?" Wuya asked, making a face that said the boy-genius was giving her a headache, _again_.

Chase nodded, calling her back as she began to walk away from them. "Wuya!"

She spun on her heel smiling, only to be hit squarely in the face with his ruined armor. "Take care of that."

He moved past her, ignoring her enraged grumbling. The black garment that had been beneath the extravagant breastplate resembled a turtleneck and clung to him like a second skin. Kimiko tried to keep her treacherous gaze from following his form, but it was no use.

She was only glad his back was to her.

"Chase, you're bleeding." Wuya observed in a small, uncaring voice.

Halting, he turned back, fixing Rai with a cold glare. "I'm aware of that."

For a split-second his eyes moved to Kimiko, one eyebrow quirking before he looked down at himself again. "Hmph, that '_dragon snot'_ is everywhere. Need I worry about another futile attempt on my life, Dragon of the Wind?"

"Not as long as you stay far enough away."

Shrugging apathetically, Chase peeled off the slimy shirt and tossed that, too, at the already disgruntled sorceress.

Kimiko found herself _really_ wishing he hadn't done that. _He's . . . he's just . . . so gor- Dammit, Kimiko! He's the enemy, get it together!_She immediately reprimanded herself, but still couldn't take her eyes off of the man.

Not when he turned and began walking away. Not even when he paused for a moment and glanced over his shoulder at her with no definable expression on his face, before disappearing into the surrounding darkness of the chamber.

Only when Wuya was gone, as well, did Rai turn to Kimiko. "What was all of that about?"

"All of what?" She asked wide-eyed.

She couldn't be sure exactly what he was asking, so she couldn't really give him an answer. But . . . if he was asking what she _thought_ he was, then she simply didn't have an answer to give.

"Nevermind, Kim."

* * *

Rai hadn't said much to her since they arrived back at the temple just a few hours ago. Which was alright with her at the moment, because she couldn't seem to think straight.

Every time she tried to focus on something, she found herself wondering about that look Chase gave her just before he disappeared. That, and trying _very _hard not to think about what Chase Young had hidden beneath his armor all this time.

* * *

Wuya entered Chase's library to find the man redressed and pulling books off of the shelves. Completely absorbed in whatever he was looking for, he didn't even notice her as he would skim the pages of a tome, slam it shut and toss it carelessly over his shoulder before reaching for the next. She watched him for several long moments, clearly wondering whether or not to say anything.

"What is it you want, Wuya? . . . _S__omething_?" He asked, his voice even and bored, not bothering to even glance at her.

"Just wondering what you're doing."

Listening to her speak irritated him to no end, but he wouldn't allow it to distract him. There was something in the way that girl looked at him. Of course, he'd seen that look before. When he received such interest from Wuya, he had all he could do not to pluck her eyes from her skull.

From the young Kimiko, that look was . . . intriguing. But then, he was certain the _growth spurt_ she'd undergone since he'd seen them last had nothing to do with it. If she did have some sort of interest in him, then he could use that against her; against all the Xiaolin dragons.

"I'm looking for something." Were he a child, he would have allowed himself to add the word _stupid._

"This I can see."

Another set of footsteps trudged into the library, signaling Jack's arrival.

"Oh, good," Chase muttered as he tossed the last book from that particular shelf and stalked across the room to the next one. "The whole gang's here."

Jack dropped himself into a chair. "What's he doing?"

"Looking for something," Wuya replied, crossing her arms under her breasts.

"Has it ever occurred to the two of you _why_ we have failed to turn those little dragons to our side time and again?"

"Because they're stubborn?" Wuya drawled tiredly.

Jack sat up, raising his hand and waving it back and forth like an excited schoolboy. "Because they're a bunch of useless goody-two-shoes?"

Sighing, Chase shook his head in disappointment. _Why do I deal with these two?_ "Because we've been taking the wrong approach. Who is the only one of them that has never turned to the Heylin side?"

Jack, in one of his unusual, sharp moments, snapped his fingers. "You're going to use Kimiko!"

"Once in a _rare_ while, you do prove that you're smarter than you look, Spicer."

The young man became excited suddenly. "Oh, man—what a great idea! She would make a nice addition to this evil lair you've got going." He paused, taking in Wuya's soured expression. "Oh, c'mon even you've got to admit the girl matured nicely. I mean, sure she was covered in dragon snot, but still! Did you see that ra—"

"And just like that you remind me that you're never quite as far from stupid as one would hope." Chase murmured, tossing one of the tomes over his shoulder and _just_ missing Jack.

"Jack does have a point." Wuya chimed in, trying for a neutral expression, but failing. "Other then some pretty ornamentation, what good is that irritating little spitfire for?"

Smiling mirthlessly as he continued to pour over the pages, he reminded her, "That _'irritating little spitfire' _has bested _you_ enough times." The tiniest flicker of humor leaked into his inhuman eyes. "Truth be told, she even bested me once—and that damnable Bean at the same time."

Wuya and Jack shared a look of disbelief. "When was this?" Jack inquired, apparently glad that he wasn't the only one left out of the loop.

"Neither of you were present, and I'm not interested in cataloging my few defeats. This is all very simple. To turn them, we have to turn their leader. And to turn their leader . . . first you turn the one he loves."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "Raimundo's in love with Kimiko?"

"Jack," Wuya rolled her eyes, "do you notice _anything?"_

"But the others turned because they wanted to be more powerful then the other dragons. Girls don't operate that way."

Finally looking up from his search, Chase turned curious eyes on the young man. "Explain clearly, or I stop your tongue from wagging permanently."

"Okay, now I know what you're both thinking, but every now and again, I do spit out a pearl of wisdom." Jack sat up straight, clearing his throat before continuing. "Now, I'm not even going to _pretend _that I understand girls, but I—unlike the two of you—am a product of the modern world. Girls have a harder time being seen as equals with boys because of old stereotypes. She never turned because she doesn't want to be better than them, she only wants to be their _equal._ That's something she can only do on her own steam."

Shrugging, Chase turned back to his search. "So you've '_spit out a pearl of wisdom_?' I suppose I'll mark this date on the calendar for next year so when it happens again you won't catch me off guard."

"But if I'm right how do you plan to get her?"

Wuya scowled at the boy. "Oh, I'm sure Chase can think of _something_."

"Don't be so vulgar, Wuya," Chase snapped, glaring at them over his shoulder before turning towards them, one of the leather bound volumes open in his hands. "I was planning on using this."

He unceremoniously dropped the tome into Spicer's lap, delighting in the pained "Oof," the action garnered.

After a moment, Jack regained his constantly fluctuating composure and began to paraphrase the text for Wuya's benefit. "The Potion of Waking Dreams. A useful tool for . . . _brainwashing? _Says it awakens the victim after only a few moments of sleep into a dream-like state. Leaves them highly open to suggestion, the manipulation is made easier when a subconscious seed of some kind has already been planted during their waking hours.

"Oh my God, this _so_ awesome! The victim falls unconscious when this artificial dream-state ends, signaling the person doing the brainwashing that they're going to wake up in a few minutes."

Looking up at Chase glassy-eyed, Jack asked, "Why haven't we tried this before?"

"That I even had such a spell slipped my mind. Regardless, I could never trust either of you to do it—at least not without screwing it up. Now, however, I have the opportunity to handle it myself."

Turning the page to the potion's recipe, he almost smiled. "Put simply, I am going to become the man of Kimiko's dreams."

He strode toward the library's double doors,."Wuya! You will gather the necessary ingredients- and no mistakes, don't think I won't know."

After he was gone, Jack turned to a scowling, grumbling Wuya. "So what do you think _really_ happened before we found them in the Dragon cave?"

"Shutup, Jack!"


	2. Near-Miss

Chapter Two

Near-Miss

Kimiko awoke to the sound of someone knocking on her bedroom door. She didn't want to get up. Snuggled down in her bedroll, she had fallen asleep thinking about all the things that _could _have happened in the Dragon's cave if Rai hadn't interrupted her staring contest with Chase Young. The knocks ripped her from slumber before she could find out if that train of thought would have influenced her dreams.

Sure, the guy was evil, but it was nice to _pretend_ something more could come of it.

She flicked the knob on the small lamp beside her. _Whoever it is, they are _so _dead. _Finally getting up, Kimiko stumbled half asleep to the door. She pulled it open just a crack and peeked around, surprised to find a pair of weary, concern-filled dark green eyes staring back at her.

"Rai? Wha-"

"I, um . . . I can't sleep. I need to talk to you."

_You can't sleep, so you won't let me, either?_ Real _nice, Rai._ "It's the middle of the night, can't this wait 'til morning?"

"Oh." Nodding, he hung his head. "Sure, okay. Sorry."

She watched as he turned away and began to head down the corridor before grumbling under her breath and giving into a sigh. She hated to see him sad, she hated even more that she was somehow the cause of it.

"Rai, wait." She took a step back, holding the door open. "C'mon."

For a time, he stood looking at her uncertainly, then nodded again. Entering the room, Rai went straight to the window, staring out as she closed the door and sat down cross-legged on her bedroll. When he at last faced her, he froze for a moment. Her long black hair hung in loose waves around her shoulders and down her back. Tired, but curious blue eyes stared back at him and he realized that, every now and again, he forgot how pretty she actually was.

So much so that he sometimes found it difficult even to speak to her, despite their years of friendship.

"You going to tell me what this is about, or just stand there staring at me?" She asked with a sleepy half-smile.

Shaking his head, he laughed quietly at himself. She didn't even realize what guys saw when they looked at her. Taking a seat on the floor beside the bedroll, he reached out tentatively, pulling a gleaming blue-black lock of hair between his fingers. She didn't move away—which he was glad for—only watching his hand before raising her eyes to find his gaze searching her face.

"I keep forgetting how long your hair's gotten."

She giggled softly, tilting her head. "I don't think you came to my room at . . ." Kimiko picked up her cell phone, blinking exhaustedly at it until the digits came into focus, "two thirty six in the morning to talk about my _hair_. What's up?"

"I wanted to talk about earlier today."

_Just when I stopped thinking about Chase Young . . ._ .

"I still don't know what you want me to say."

Rai shook his head. "No, you don't need to say anything, I do. I realized you didn't know what was going on."

"What? You mean when you tried to pick a fight with a fifteen _hundred_ year old bad guy?"

"Yeah, that. I just reacted to what Chase was doing, I couldn't help it."

Searching her memory, she could only arch an eyebrow at the statement. "What are you talking about? He didn't do anything."

"Remember all those times you tripped and almost busted your ass?"

"Yeah, you kept helping me up. So?"

He shook his head. "That wasn't me."

Kimiko's face went blank, understanding beginning to dawn in her sleepy brain. "What?"

"Don't get me wrong, I tried, but every time you started to slip I wanted to reach for you, but before I could even react, he had you in his hands." He lowered his gaze, looking guilty. "I just got so _angry_ at him. I felt like he wouldn't let me touch you."

She was glad he averted his gaze a second earlier. His wording brought back the way she'd felt when Chase held her against him. Her cheeks burned a little, but she could easily explain it away as embarrassment, if she needed to.

In that moment, a single thought stood out in her mind. _Funny, last night it would have put butterflies in my stomach to find Rai at my bedroom door in the middle of the night. What's changed?_

"I, um . . . ." Her teeth sunk slowly into her bottom lip as she thought her words through. "I still don't think that's a good enough reason to have stabbed the man. It sounds like he was only being gentlemanly."

When Rai finally brought his gaze back to meet hers, he made a face as though she'd sprouted a second head before his very eyes. "Yeah, that don't strike you as strange? That a _fifteen hundred year old bad guy_ was being nice to you?"

_I must be more tired then I thought._ "I don't follow."

"Oh, c'mon. It's the oldest trick—it's in like _every_ movie. The bad guy tries to get the girl by making her think 'hey, maybe he's not _so_ bad, I can change him' and then what happens? The girl ends up being the one to turn sides."

She couldn't help laughing, which only further soured Rai's serious expression. "Okay, I think you're reading _way_ too much into this."

"Maybe, but you never know."

"Knock it off, Rai." The moment the words left her lips her eyes became apologetic.

The subject had touched on a nerve that she'd never given much thought to before. It was one thing for her male friends to pick on her for being a girl, but when a female enemy—specifically a leggy, red-haired viper, like Wuya—didn't view you as any sort of threat it was just degrading. "The Heylin _never_ wanted me. They wanted you and Omi. Why would that change?"

"Because you've changed, Kim."

"No, Rai. I haven't."

"Yeah, you have. And I don't just mean the way you look."

She blushed, hanging her head. "I didn't think you and the others even noticed."

"Eh." He shrugged. "We pretend not to 'cause we don't want you to feel uncomfortable, being the only girl here, but- c'mon! We're _guys_, of course we noticed when your robes started to . . ." he cleared his throat, voice lowering a bit, "to, uh, _fit_ a little better."

Giggling shyly behind her hand, she responded. "Okay, I get it. But that's no reason for—"

"But it's not _just_ that. There's other stuff, like the way you carry yourself is different. You control your abilities way better then you used to—better than the rest of us—you're so confident now and it's really hard ignore, Kim. _You _are really hard to ignore. I think they noticed it, too. At least I _know_ Chase did." His eyes became hard for a moment as he recalled, "I could see it—it was in the way he looked at you."

Kimiko's gaze lowered involuntarily. "There was nothing there, Rai. You're imagining things."

"No, I'm not. I know what I'm talking about because . . . ." His voice trailed off as he reached out, gently cupping her chin and lifting her face until their eyes met. "It's the same way _I_ look at you."

Even the air in the room seemed to still for a long while as she stared back at him, unblinking. His gaze lowered, lingering on her mouth and then he leaned toward her. Kimiko moved into him, her eyes drifting closed as Rai's warm breath whispered over her lips.

_Crash!_

_"_Dang nabbit, stupid urn!" An all too familiar drawl boomed from the corridor, despite a clear attempt to whisper.

The interruption brought them back to reality and she pulled away a little, blinking up at him. "I think you'd better go help Clay. Sounds like he woke up in the middle of a sleepwalking spell again."

Rai hung his head, giving a defeated half-smile. "Yeah, I guess I should." His gaze returned to hers. "Are we okay?"

Now that the moment was broken, she remembered how tired she was, grinning sleepily. "Of course. Now, _please_ let me sleep."

"Okay, Kim." Nodding, he finally stood and headed for the door. "See you in the morning."

When she was alone again she drew in a deep breath, letting it out slowly as she allowed herself to fall back against her bedroll. "Thanks a _lot_, Clay. That was almost my first kiss. Well, at least it got me to stop thinking about Chase Young."

Just saying his name brought the last image she'd seen of him in the cave floating into her mind. She squeezed her eyes shut and grumbled, "Oh, damn it, Kimiko!"


	3. Unexpected Confidantes

(This will be the last chapter posted for today [4/25], hopefully, I'll have more ready for tomorrow, if not the next chapters will be up on Monday. Have a fantastic weekend, and thanks for reading! *heart*)

Chapter Three

Unexpected Confidantes

Outside Kimiko's bedroom window, a pair of dark-gold eyes glittered with the faintest hint of triumph. The girl was untouched? How . . . interesting. "Did you hear that?"

"Yeah, hard to believe, since she's like, what, seventeen? Even harder to believe that Raimundo _lives_ with her and hasn't tried to hit that sooner."

"Well, it does work to _my _advantage. This will go much more smoothly—and quickly—without outside influence." Chase smirked. "Never thought I'd say this, but I find myself thankful to that offish earth-dragon at the moment. You have it?"

Nodding, Jack retrieved a small vial of clear odorless, tasteless liquid from his ever-present backpack and handed it—and the Serpent's Tail—over. "I'm not sure this is going to work. She _hates_ me."

"Of course she does, Jack. Everyone does, that's part of your charm," the Heylin prince responded flatly, weighing the vial in his palm. "Should be enough here for perhaps a month of waking dreams."

"She'll sleep for a month?"

"Why Jack, you almost sound concerned for her. No, you fool. It only takes affect when she falls asleep and wanes when she awakens. I thought you read up on this."

The young man shrugged. "I thought maybe I missed some—"

"No matter. You've helped her more than once in the past, and the inherent flaw of the Xiaolin is that it is _those_ moments to which they cling. Now get in there, I don't care what you say to her—distract her, get her to drink the damned tea—just get her mind off of that little _shit_ Raimundo. If _I _am the last thing on _her_ mind when she falls asleep, she'll be much more susceptible and far less likely to question her subconscious. And, by the way, if Wuya has poisoned this, or tampered with it in _any_ way, you will carry that woman's head around on a pike until it rots."

Jack nodded again, shuddering at the mental picture of such a thing. As he turned back toward, the window the ferocity and inflection of certain words in Chase's statement hit him. "Hey, wait a minute . . . . Do you actually _like _Kimiko or something?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Chase muttered, leveling his bored gaze at the boy. "In case you hadn't noticed, the only thing I _like_ is the notion of ruling the world."

"Uh-huh. And if you woke up one morning and just so _happened_ find her next to you . . . ?"

Chase scowled impatiently. "Well, I wouldn't kick her out of my bed, but _that_ is hardly something one need justify with any sort of caring, nor was that the question. Now _get_ in there."

_The things I do for evil. _Shaking his head, Jack tapped on the window as Chase stepped back, sinking into the shadows.

* * *

Switching the light on once again, Kimiko blinked a few times, allowing her eyes a moment to adjust. She hadn't quite gotten back to sleep yet, but had come so _very _close that this new disturbance made her want to cry. What the _hell_ was that sound?

The tapping came again and she looked toward the window, uncertain of how to respond to the bright red hair and matching eyes peering in at her. "Jack _Spicer_?" She muttered in disbelief. _Will it _never _end?_

He gave the goofy, lopsided grin he always used when he needed help. She groaned, rolling her eyes as she pulled her blanket around her shoulders and got to her feet. She was reluctant to open the window, but knew she risked waking everyone in the temple if she tried to yell through the glass. The last thing she wanted was to have to explain to Rai what the _fifteen hundred year old bad guy's _sidekick was doing visiting her bedroom in the middle of the night.

She frowned at him for a long moment until an all too familiar look of pathetic pleading came into his eyes. Melodramatically throwing her head back, she groaned again, but trudged over to the window. She reached for the lock, pausing for a second, her fingers resting against the metal as she clearly mouthed the words, _remember I _can _kill you._

Rather than looking frightened or spooked, he merely nodded and she realized his presence—for the time being—did not pose a threat. Finally unlatching the window, she pushed it open.

"Jack," she whispered harshly. "What the hell . . .?"

"I kinda need to talk to you."

"Wha—"

"Look, I have a problem." He fished around in his head for something—_anything_—to tell her. "You're the only one who might be able to help. It's about . . . a girl. And . . . you're the only female I know who both has a heart _and_ is willing to speak to me."

After a long while of simply blinking up at him, she finally smiled, letting out a quiet giggle. "Jack Spicer having _girl_ trouble? Never thought I'd see the day."

"You don't think I'd have _trouble_ with a girl?" he asked in a hushed, but surprised tone.

"No, I never thought you'd _have_ a girl to be troubled over."

"_Hey_ . . . Okay, you're right. This is totally new to me . . . so, will you please help me? I just wanna talk, then I'll go away. I promise."

Leaning out the window past him, she looked around, squinting into the surrounding darkness. Apparently satisfied that he was alone, she finally took a step back.

"Fine, come in." Pointing a small, but threatening finger in his face she murmured, "But if I so much as _think_ you're trying to pull something underhanded, I will fry you 'til you're crispy."

"Hey, no problem." He climbed in, surprised at himself that he didn't make a sound. _Maybe skulking around with Wuya all this time has finally paid off._

She sat on the bedroll, leaning back against the wall and stared at him until he sat down, as well. "I can't believe you're in my room."

Nodding, he gave an awkward laugh. "Neither can I. Um . . . tea?"

"_Tea_," she echoed, frowning. "Jack Spicer, I am not making you tea."

"No, no. I have tea." Pulling off his backpack, he began to rummage around inside of it.

"You carry hot tea around with you?"

"_No_." He arched an eyebrow at her as he removed a few items. "Kimiko, you forget who you're talking to. Bottled water, tea bags, cups and a self-heating kettle." Showing her a little red button on the teapot's handle. "Just have to press that and in like two minutes, you've got tea."

"Wow, you really come prepared." She was mildly surprised that Jack was actually behaving decently—and that he was the type to drink tea. "And if I hadn't let you in?"

Setting the kettle to brew, he shrugged. "Eh, you know me. I'd be off somewhere, alone, crying into my teacup."

Kimiko laughed softly, but quickly remembered who was making her laugh and stopped instantly. "Who's this girl? Is it Katnappe?"

"_No,_" he responded instantly in a loud whisper. "I hate that girl more then I hate you guys."

She lifted her hand, hiding a ferocious yawn. "And yet, here you are."

"You're tired, huh?"

Scowling, she muttered. "Gee, ya think?"

"Okay, sorry." _Hey, now I can find out what _really _happened. _Chase said he could talk about _anything_; Jack just wasn't sure he looked forward to where it would lead. _"_Will you tell me what went on before we found you guys this morning?"

And just like that, she was thinking about Chase Young—shirtless, watching her over his shoulder—again. "What's to tell?"

"You're kidding, right?" He poured the tea and then handed her a cup, but she only stared at it for a long moment. "Fine, I'll taste it first. I wouldn't poison you, Kimiko. That's low, even for me."

He drank from his own cup, and she finally accepted the other, taking a tentative sip before she handed it back, nodding almost appreciatively.

"Even _I _saw the way you and Chase looked at each other." He turned away for a moment, setting the teacups against the wall behind him and turned back, making certain his own moves were obvious and quick so she wouldn't be suspicious. "It was like if the rest of us weren't there, you two would've—"

"_Why _is this any concern of yours?"

_And here comes the part that I'm going to_ hate. "Because it's of concern to Wuya."

Her brow furrowed, the words not quite making sense in her sleep-deprived brain. "Wuya? Why would you suddenly care what—" Blue eyes suddenly showed white all around. "Wuya's the _girl_?"

With such reluctance that it almost caused him pain, Jack nodded. "She didn't like what she saw. I personally don't care, but if Wuya and Chase ever hook up, it leaves no room for me."

Kimiko's eyes raked across the floor as she turned his words over in her head. "_Ever?_ I thought . . . ."

"Nope." A quick poke in his spine told him that her tea was fixed, so he turned back—every gesture as broad and harmless as before—and retrieved the cups. It was easy to tell which was hers—he'd intentionally bitten the rim of his so he wouldn't mix them up. "Oh, not like she hasn't wished it, but he's never given her the time of day."

She took another sip. "If that's the case, why would it matter if his eyes wander?"

Jack shrugged. "They're immortal, she's convinced she can whittle him down. Ya know, in another century or two, maybe."

"I don't know what to tell you, Jack. I don't know _what_ happened, really." It felt strange to have an adult conversation with Jack Spicer, of all people. Even stranger to realize that if they were on the same side, they might actually be _friends_. "Doesn't Wuya just see you as, like, a pet or something?"

He nodded, hanging his head—it was too hard not to watch her lifting the cup to her lips, and he didn't want her catching any hints that he was up to something. "Yeah. But if there's something between you and Chase, then she'll realize that, sure, we've had our ups and downs, but we keep coming back to each other."

"If by ups and downs you mean constantly abandoning eachother."

"It's what villains do."

"Have you tried not acting like such a damned goofball all the time? You may have to win the woman over on your own merit."

"Win a woman over _on my own?_ Hi, I'm Jack Spicer, have we met?"

She laughed, setting down her teacup. "Did, um . . . did Chase give you a reason to think something happened?"

"Yes and no." Jack leaned over, peering over the brim to find her cup empty. "More?"

Kimiko shook her head, blinking tiredly.

"He didn't _say_ anything, but he was just acting different."

She lifted a brow. "Different how?"

"Meaner, mostly. He only does that when he's preoccupied. _And_ whenever your name was mentioned he'd suddenly start paying attention to the conversation—or accidentally crush to dust whatever he was holding at the time."

Kimiko found herself once more remembering the feel of Chase's arms around her . . . and the butterflies the memory sent zipping around in her stomach. _Damn it!_

"So, _was_ there something there, or not?"

"First you tell me something."

"What?"

She smiled wickedly. "Are you _in love_ with Wuya?"

_Oh, God, don't make me say it!_ He knew this was where the conversation would lead when he started it. "I . . . I don't know. Maybe," he lied smoothly, but the conversation did bring up something he'd never given much thought to; if Chase ever gave into Wuya, where _would _that leave him?

"Now your answer."

Shrugging, Kimiko realized sadly that when Rai had been there earlier, she'd lied to him; she hadn't meant to, but she had, just the same. "This conversation doesn't leave this room?"

"And risk you turning this whole thing on me by telling everyone I'm in love with _Wuya_?" He shook his head. "I won't talk if you won't."

"Fine." She let out a long sigh. She might as well say it, after all she needed _someone_ to confide in, and she couldn't tell any of her friends; she just never thought Jack would end up being that someone. "Just before you guys came running in Chase and Rai got thrown against the wall _really _hard. I got sneezed out like two seconds later, but before I could get hurt . . . Chase caught me."

"What, on purpose?" He asked in a bit of shock- clearly there really _was_ more to this than Chase had admitted.

She wanted to say no, but then Rai's words ran through her head. _Before I could even react, he had you in his hands. I felt like he wouldn't let me touch you. _"Seems so. And he just held me until we were sure the dragon wasn't a threat. Then we just . . ." she shook her head. "I don't know, it's like we just sort of . . . got _stuck_ looking at eachother."

"So there was a look before the one _we_ all saw?"

"Yep."

"And?" He asked anxiously, making Kimiko certain that if he were sitting in a chair, he'd have fallen out of it just now.

"It felt like there was _something _between us, Jack. I have no idea what it was." Becoming defensive suddenly, she added, "But just because there _might_ be some sort of spark doesn't mean anything. Xiaolin, Heylin—do these words mean nothing to you? He's evil, I'm not, remember?"

For a moment, he looked frightened by her whispered outburst. If he kept pissing her off, she just might set him ablaze, but the sense of threat faded quickly as the source of her agitation struck him. "He _really_ got to you, didn't he?"

"So _what_?" She mumbled with a shrug—why did she even _care_? She and Chase were both good-looking, why wouldn't there be an attraction? "I told you it doesn't mean anything. Why is everyone making such a big deal about this? It was _only _a look."

Jack laughed, as much at her discomfort as at her adorable level of naïveté. "_Yeah," _nodding, he mused in a quiet, absentminded tone, "a _completely_ mutual look that pretty much said 'I want to tear your clothes off and ravage you six ways from Sunday'." So, maybe he was embellishing a little for effect.

For a long moment Kimiko was speechless. Her mouth opened and closed a few times as she tried to form a response, staring at him wide-eyed and scandalized. "_That_ . . . is just . . . _totally_ not . . . true."

Shrugging, he began to pack up his things. "Of course not, what do I know? I'm just the overly-observant boy-genius in the room."

Her eyes raked over the floor again as a blush colored her cheeks and he could tell she was running his words over in her mind. He flicked off her lamp and stood, shouldering his backpack.

"I'll let you get your rest. Thanks for the talk. 'Til the next Showdown . . . or the next time I try to steal your Wu, whichever comes first."

She nodded numbly, watching as he waved and disappeared back out the window. He even closed it behind him, but Kimiko was suddenly far too sleepy to get up and lock it. _I'll get it in the morning._ Pulling her blanket tightly around herself once more, she lay on her side and at last fell quickly to sleep.

* * *

Even before Kimiko opened her eyes, she understood that she was dreaming. She felt like she was floating; every thought had its own, surreal edge to it. She was snuggled against someone's side—a wholly unfamiliar feeling—but it wasn't until she felt fingertips tracing along her bare back beneath her nightshirt that she opened her eyes.

She looked up at him to find his gaze already locked on hers—and the pleasant surprise that he wasn't wearing a shirt. Kimiko had heard of lucid dreaming—dreams in which people knew they were asleep, and had control over their actions—but she'd never experienced it before. If such episodes were usually like _this_, she was definitely willing to give it a try.

"Well, this is . . . a nice dream," she whispered bashfully.

His teeth sinking slowly into his bottom lip before he gave into a wicked grin, Chase Young murmured in response, "I have a few ideas on how we can make it even _nicer_."


End file.
